A new

high-performance wire electrical discharge machining (EDM) system has been launched by GF AgieCharmilles for micro-projects and super-precision applications.

The CUT 1000 takes a classic machine tool set-up which has been "redesigned from the bottom up", giving the technology a heavily reinforced and rigid machine base with slide blocks run on roller guide rails positioned directly on the monobloc.

Mutual interference is also eliminated by separate guideways for the X and Y-axis, with high-quality measuring equipment allowing for particularly precise and accurate machining.

The company is hoping that the new system will deliver improved productivity, greater manufacturing flexibility and increased accuracy on previous releases for micro-CNC machining.

A touch screen remote control complements the system, allowing operators to input relevant data much faster, reducing time spent on job set-ups.

Alongside its EDM projects, AgieCharmilles also specialises in high-speed and high-performance milling in order to enhance the growth of businesses in the sector.

If you're searching for CNC lathes visit our preferred supplier list.ADNFCR-1982-ID-19204614-ADNFCR
http://www.machinetooldirect.co.uk/machine-tool-news/New-EDM-CNC-machine-launched-by-AgieCharmilles-200.asp

BRISBANE-based Modern Engineering is using CNC machine tools from 600 Machines at its Northgate machine shop, allowing faster set-up time and quicker production of parts.
Modern Engineering provides general and precision services to industry, as well as pump repairs and breakdown services.
The Northgate machine shop offers full fabrication and assembly services, with CNC machine tools providing tasks like turning and milling. Modern Engineering produces a variety of components in mild steel, stainless, copper, brass, bronze, and other metals and alloys.
Most of the machining equipment was supplied to Modern Engineering by 600 Machine Tools. The company most recently delivered a Colchester Alpha XS lathe fitted with the latest Fanuc 21i TB controller.
According to 600 Machine Tools, no other lathes on the market today, including full CNC machines, can compete with the speed of Colchester Alpha X Series during the production of ‘one-offs’ and small-batch turned parts.
The Colchester Alpha 1550XS has a swing-over bed of 554mm, a 15kW main motor, spindle speeds of 1-2000rpm, and a spindle bore of 104mm. The lathe has an automatic slideway and ballscrew lubrication system.
http://www.metalworker.com.au/Article/Modern-Engineering-boosts-productivity-with-600-Machines-Colchester-lathe/480183.aspx

XYZ Machine Tools has supplied three new CNC machines tools to Sunderland Engineering Training Association for the apprentice training requirements of local engineering and manufacturing companies.

For the best part of 40 years Sunderland Engineering Training Association has exerted a significant influence on the training of engineering apprentices on behalf of companies based in the north east of England.

Between 35 to 40 school-leavers, mainly 16 year-olds, are welcomed every year into the well-equipped training centre for first-year training, with post first-year monitoring and support ensuring full completion of the apprenticeship.

Now, having invested in three new CNC machines tools supplied by XYZ Machine Tools of Burlescombe, Devon, SETA is better equipped than ever to meet the apprentice training requirements of local engineering and manufacturing companies.

According to Bob Kiszow, SETA's Works Manager, the training centre on the Wear Industrial Estate in Washington, Tyne and Wear is run on a realistic industrial basis, instilling in the people it trains a work ethic and self-discipline.

"Training young people and seeing them develop is extremely worthwhile," he says.

"Whatever their backgrounds, most will achieve NVQ Level 2 at a relatively early stage of the training programme." All three XYZ machines were installed in January 2007 with commissioning and training of SETA's instructors completed the following month.

The two 5.75 kW (7.5 hp)/2500 rev/min XYZ ProTURN SLX 1630 manual/CNC lathes are equipped with the latest generation ProtoTRAK SLX control.

This control - developed by Southwestern Industries, Inc, specifically for one-off and low volume production - can be mastered within a day by operators with no previous CNC experience, while its unique 'traking' feature provides vital reassurance to trainees.

The user can physically wind through the NC program's tool path, checking for possible collision points and, in the process, boosting operator confidence.

The third machine is a full-CNC 9 hp/8000 rev/min XYZ Mini Mill 450 compact vertical machining centre equipped with a CNC7 control.

This control is easily configured to match existing skills, which is particularly helpful for first-time CNC users and trainees who may otherwise be overwhelmed by CNC language, features and screen displays.

The full-colour graphics displayed on the high-resolution LCD screen allow verification of tool path and part program prior to commencing machining, with operator confidence guaranteed by the synchronised display between the graphics and machine movement - there is no discrepancy between what appears on the screen and what the machine actually does when the program runs.

And there are other safeguards, including a 'mid-program start' feature that allows a program to be verified graphically up to the point where machining should recommence.

At this point the operator can then switch over to 'run' mode Before deciding on the XYZ machines, Bob Kiszow says SETA member companies were asked for their recommendations and individuals responsible for CNC purchases within their those companies invited to check out the machines' specifications and performance.

"We did our homework", he says, "and decided that, pound for pound, we were getting machines that would do a good job for us while also looking the part - and that's important in terms of enthusing young people about the technology of the future." SETA adopted the Engineering and Marine Training Authority's Modern Apprenticeship when it was introduced formally in 1995, and as part of the formal off-the-job element provides a first-year, 30-week, transition from the basics of manual machining to full-blown CNC.

The full training programme leads to a minimum qualification of NVQ Level 3, with part-time college attendance affording apprentices the opportunity to achieve a Higher National Certificate.

Lawrence Whitney, SETA's Chief Executive, says member companies usually employ and pay apprentices from day one, so a high standard of performance and behaviour is required during the training programme.

A commitment by individuals, he adds, "is particularly important in view of the safety aspects of working in engineering - and safety combined with ease-of-use are crucial factors that must always be taken into account when assessing the performance and operation of any machine tool.".

http://www.manufacturingtalk.com/news/xyz/xyz227.html

Jean Michel Vallet has built his engineering workshop by making precision components on CNC machines for mostly local companies, but always with one eye on his long-held dream of building a race car.

In the early 1970s, Vallet was quick to realise the potential of CNC, investing in the first of many numerically controlled machines.

In the late 1990s, the time came to move to new premises; and it was the ideal opportunity to streamline the company's workshop.

'When we built this new factory, we had something like seven different makes of CNC machine tools,' said Vallet.

'Running the factory was complicated and inefficient.

'For the sake of productivity, we had to standardise.' In 1998, Vallet took a trip to the Paris machine tool show where, where he came across Haas CNC machine tools.

'We found the best machines for our growing company,' he added.

'All Haas machines have the same control, which means if you can program one, you can program all of them.

'Plus, they offer lots of torque, which is ideal because we often use large diameter end mills on stainless steel.' He was also impressed with the Haas fourth-axis capabilities.

The company now owns several Haas machines, including a VF-9 vertical machining centre.

Vallet began by supplying a local company making machines for bottling plants.

Today, the company's bread-and-butter work, the work which will pay for Vallet to pursue his motor racing dream, is mainly making parts for companies building food packaging and processing machines, plus some special and secretive aerospace projects.

'We make scale models of new and prototype aircraft, which are used for wind tunnel testing and are full of sensors measuring airflow and aerodynamic forces,' he said.

'We also make five-axis parts for our aerospace customers, which are actually comparatively straight forward to machine.

'The trickiest parts we make are for the food processing industry, machined from special stainless steels.

'These parts often have very tight tolerances, which is a challenge because we have to find ways of making them at the price the customer wants to pay.

'It's demanding work, which we're able to do because we use accurate but relatively low-cost machine tools.' In Vallet's busy workshop is a line of Haas machines including eight CNC vertical machining centres and five CNC turning centres.

One, a Haas VF-1, runs 24 hours a day using a Kuka robot arm to change parts.

An adjacent PC, using software designed personally by Vallet, controls the robot separately.

PCs interconnect all the machining stations, allowing managers to keep tight control of planning and scheduling.

The factory runs three shifts and 24 hours a day; 10 Haas machines running through the night with just five operators on duty.

'My aim is to create an entire racing car from just six solid blocks of aluminium, in 70 hours, using only four tools,' said Vallet.

Big blocks of aluminium, he admits, but just six, from which he intends to machine all of the major and supporting structural components, including the chassis, suspension, mounting brackets, and so on.

No castings, no extrusions, just solid parts.

'We'll buy-in brakes, glass, wheels, that sort of thing, we'll make the body from glass fibre and we'll use an Alfa Romeo V6 engine, giving 340HP,' he added.

'But otherwise, we'll make it here, on one Haas machine, in less than a week of running two shifts a day.'.

http://www.manufacturingtalk.com/news/has/has151.html

Precision toolmaker Hanson Thorpe, based in Middleton, Manchester, has recently invested in two CNC machine tools from Agie Charmilles.

An FO 550s spark erosion machine and a Mikron VCE 800 Pro 3-axis milling machine were installed at Hanson Thorpe's facility in January and April respectively, and are being used to manufacture high-precision, complex plastic injection mould tools (pre-production tools, single and multi-impression, 3D form and twin-shot) for the medical devices, automotive, electronics and consumer goods sectors.

These machines have also enabled Hanson Thorpe to diversify its operations into complex part production for specialist high-precision industries, such as medical and surgical instruments.

In 2007, the company invested in a purpose-built and designed 3-axis high-speed machining centre, a Mikron Graphitemaster, which in conjunction with special diamond cutting tools, is used to machine graphite electrodes.

Once machined, inspected and measured, the electrodes are transferred to Agie Charmilles spark erosion machines for mould manufacture.

The FO 550s is a large, high-performance die-sink machine with 600 x 400 x 450mm (X, Y, Z) travels, which can handle parts of up to 1,600kg.

The machine produces consistently high and homogenous surface finishes (0.1 micron Ra), eliminating the need for costly and time intensive secondary polishing operations.

Owing to the machine's rapid Z-axis movement, which facilitates the optimum evacuation of particles and debris from the spark gap - plus the machine's high acceleration rates - intricate details and features such as medium-to-deep ribs and thin walls can be machined 30 per cent faster and to greater accuracy.

The machine also delivers increased productivity, and can be left running unattended (lights-out) for longer machining operations.

The VCE 800 Pro is a powerful, high-precision 3-axis machining centre used by Hanson Thorpe to manufacture plates, bolsters and larger mould tools.

The machine is also used for high material removal machining (roughing) operations.

It has a good working envelope (X 800mm, Y 500mm, Z 540mm), and is equipped with a powerful 18.5kW 10,000rpm spindle.

The machine has fast rapids (24m per minute in X and Y and 20m per minute in Z), and was supplied with laser tool and workpiece probes, and linear scales.

http://www.manufacturingtalk.com/news/agi/agi193.html

CNC technology follows mass-market computing trends, so advances in general-purpose computing engines make more capable controllers available for CNC systems. Link to tutorial.

That general-purpose-computing needs drive microprocessor trends is a fact of life. Simple semiconductor-fabrication economics makes mass-marketable designs very inexpensive, while making designs aimed at smaller market segments, such as CNC, cost prohibitive. The good news is that rapid development of advanced computer chips for consumer products provides CNC machine developers with a steady supply of high-performing control processors at relatively low prices. The bad news is that sometimes there is a disconnect between what CNC machine technology needs and what general-purpose computing provides.

Serial or parallel processing?

Click here for a wider view of this image and the CNC microprocessor topic.

“Tutorial: Microprocessor advances translate into more CNC machine capability,” a newly published online tutorial article (www.controleng.com/article/CA6634377.html) by Control Engineering, explores how semiconductor device advances affect CNC controller trends. The article looks at how semiconductor trends, including multicore processors, system on chip technology, Flash memory, and reduced power dissipation, dovetail with CNC controller needs.

“Overall, positives outweigh negatives,” says C.G.Masi for Control Engineering. “Following the path of semiconductor device advances provides CNC controllers with capabilities only dreamed of before. Where CNC needs do not align well with consumer electronics trends, OEMs developing new CNC products have to find work-arounds to make the available parts do CNC jobs adequately.”

An example is in the area of non-volatile solid-state disks (SSDs). Mobile consumer devices have a short life span, so limitations on how many times a Flash memory cell can be rewritten are not a problem there. For CNC, however, limited write-erase cycles is a major problem. In CNC applications, system developers want to keep a real-time record of the entire machine’s current state as a safety feature in case of unexpected system shutdown, such as during a power failure. That means updating the SSD data in real time, which can rapidly exhaust Flash memory cells.
http://www.controleng.com/article/CA6637444.html?industryid=48517

“When we get a new part order we start programming for our CMM inspection at the same time we start programming for our CNC machines,” Jeff Lage said. Lage is vicepresident of B&B Manufacturing in Valencia, Calif. B&B is one of American Machinist’s 10 Best Shops for 2008.

“It is not unusual for us to complete the CNC programming, machine parts, then have them sit in inspection waiting for the CMM program to be completed,” Lage added.

The shop consistently works at improving its operations. It uses some of the latest equipment, and it has competent, experienced Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) programmers.

Yet, like many other shops, it hits a production bottleneck in inspection. The primary reason for that bottleneck is not limitations of the CMMs, nor is it limitations of the programmers. The bottleneck is the direct result of the limitations of the software tools its programmers use.

Coordinate Measuring Machines are used in manufacturing to test a part or assembly against the original design of that part or assembly and to develop a report to show how successful the part or assembly is in meeting the original design intent.

Some CMMs use probes to touch predetermined spots on a part that is being measured, and record the X, Y and Z coordinates at that point for use later to determine the size and position of various features on the part. Other probes can be dragged along the surface of a part to take measurements at specified intervals.

The latest development in CMM inspection involves the use of laser beams that are projected on the surface of the part to record thousands of points of reference.

In addition to the CMM there usually is a personal computer attached with software that drives the machine and enables a user to create a program to tell the machine exactly what to test and how to do it.

That is where the bottleneck begins.

Developers of the Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM) software that is used to program CNC machines spend much of their time and money in creating user-friendly, feature-rich human interfaces for their software because that is what is needed to stay competitive.

CMM manufacturers spend much of their development time and money creating better machines. CMM manufacturers see the creation of software to program and drive their machines as necessary, but it is not their primary focus.

The result is that the human interfaces of the software supplied by CMM manufacturers are not as user-friendly or as feature rich as the interfaces made available on CAM software programs.

Programming a CMM using only the software supplied by the manufacturer is far more tedious and time consuming than programming a CNC with any of the current CAM packages. In fact, it frequently is similar to programming a CNC machine by writing one line of G-code at a time.

In response to the need for a better, easier way to develop programs for CMMs, several software development companies have created packages that attempt to bring the user-friendly, feature rich qualities of a CAM package to the task of programming CMMs.

PAS CMM showing the result of feature extraction and inputting inspection parameters.

Inputting dimension and positioning data for each feature to be inspected.

Probes location

Probe motion optimization to reduce actual inspection time.

CMM machine simulation

One such company is Hexagon Metrology with its PC-DMIS suite of software modules.

Another is Siemens PLM Software which offers stand-alone packages in addition to CMM programming capability integrated into its NX CAM software suite.

A third supplier is Delcam PLC with its PowerINSPECT software.

And the latest, and perhaps most interesting entry into the CMM programming market is PAS Technology and its PAS CMM package.

All of these software packages are designed to provide improvements in programming a CMM. However, trying to determine which offers the most productivity improvement potential for any given shop is more difficult than determining which CAM package is the best solution.

All of the CAM packages on the market use the Automatically Programmed Tool (APT) computer language that commonly is known as G-code. That is the reason that it is possible to use any of the packages to run any of today’s CNC machines by feeding the generated G-code through a post processor tailored to each machine to get the machine commands unique to each machine.

In CMM programming, there is no one common language similar to APT, and there are at least two languages that are incompatible with each other.

One is DMIS (Dimensional Measuring Interface Standard) and the other is CALYPSO.

Most Zeiss CMMs are equipped with controllers that use CALYPSO while CMMs made by other companies use some form of DMIS. Software developers who aim to improve CMM programmer productivity also focus on generating and using DMIS code.

A consortium of companies led by Deere & Co. was formed to try to convince all CMM manufacturers to certify that the version of DMIS that they use meets the current DMIS standard. Until that consortium is successful, there is no guarantee that any randomly chosen package could be used to generate code that will run on all of the CMMs in a shop. Even if that happens, shops that use Zeiss CMMs would have to use a DMIS-driven controller to take advantage of available software productivity tools.

In addition to language incompatibility, there is no current standard for the electronic capture and transmission of the most important information needed for inspection — the geometric dimensioning and tolerance (GDT) data that is used to describe the nominal geometry and allowable variations.

Currently, that information usually is transmitted from the designer to the manufacturer on a drawing.

There is a separate effort to develop a standard STEP file format for transmitting geometric dimensioning and tolerance data electronically. Until such a standard is established and implemented, only a few software packages are available to transmit that information electronically, and they use proprietary formulas to do it, so they are not compatible with each other.

The net result is that, in almost all cases, geometric dimensioning and tolerance data must be input manually into a CMM program.

Then there are the questions of whether a shop wants to inspect parts on its CNC machine or at its standalone CMM, and whether it wants to use a stand-alone CMM in a temperature- controlled room or, as with a portable CMM, on the shop floor where temperature variations could cause erroneous measurements.

The overarching question is, however, whether a given software package would work with all of the types of CMMs that a shop could own.

Hexagon’s PC-DMIS, Siemens’ NX suite and Delcam’s PowerINSPECT all offer a form of on-machine inspection capability. There is a growing trend for shops to use on-machine inspection as part of the machining process rather than as part of a final inspection.

The CMM software from Hexagon, Siemens and Delcam all generate reports. Because the ultimate output of any CMM operation is to report how close a part is to the design intent, the form of the report that a CMM generates and the report’s ability to effectively communicate such information is an important factor in choosing an operating software package for the machines.

But the capability of a software package to do on-machine and stand alone inspection, and to generate useful reports does not address the problem of the programming bottleneck.

All of those packages work from 3D CAD models. Siemens’ NX suite is a comprehensive CAD/CAM/CAE package that is being integrated with other Siemens Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software to provide companies with a very extensive suite of software modules that support both the shop floor and front office.

Several years ago UGS, the developer of Unigraphics, acquired Technomatix and with it a strong CMM plugin module that was, and still is being used by other CAD/CAM packages such as Catia and PTC’s Pro/E.

When Siemens PLM acquired UGS, it changed the name of Unigraphics to NX and began an integration of its PLM software with NX. The CMM software developed by Technomatix has been integrated into NX so that the user interface for CMM programming has the same look and feel as the NX CAD and CAM modules. The NX native file format is one that allows geometric dimensioning and tolerance data to be passed electronically from the designer to the CMM programmer, and Siemens is working to automate that data into the CMM program generation process.

Delcam’s PowerINSPECT also has the user-friendly look and feel of other Delcam products. Geometric dimensioning and tolerance data is still a matter of point-and-click feature selection combined with manual data input.

Both of those packages represent some improvement in reducing CMM programming time, but the fourth package mentioned above, PAS CMM from PAS Technology, represents a quantum jump in reducing CMM programming time.

PAS CMM does not generate reports, is not a CAD or CAD/CAM package, and doesn’t drive on-machine inspection the way the other packages do. All it does is take a 3D CAD model, any 3D CAD model, and generates DMIS code that can be used by any DMIS-controlled CMM. What makes it interesting is that it reduces the time it takes to generate the DMIS code by as much as 80 percent or more.

In an actual test on a potential customer’s part, PAS CMM reduced total time to develop a DMIS CMM program for that part from the seven working days the customer had spent to develop the program to less than six hours.

PAS CMM uses a combination of sophisticated feature recognition and probe control to almost completely automate the DMIS code generation. In this example, it took two minutes to import the file into PAS CMM, two minutes to build the alignment, one minute to specify machine orientation, three minutes for feature recognition extraction preparation, 30 minutes to complete feature extraction on 880 identifiable features, and four minutes to generate the CMM DMIS code. The bulk of the time was spent in manually entering inspection parameters and dimensions (geometric dimensioning and tolerance data). That took 300 minutes. Other tests using parts from other customers had the same results.

If there was a standard format for electronically transmitting the geometric dimensioning and tolerance data, then Sam Golan, president of Pas Technology, estimates that those 300 minutes could be reduced to less than 30.

Developing that standard is a goal that several companies are working on. Golan believes it will happen, but that it will take another two years at least to realize.

Because PAS CMM is focused only on automating the generation of DMIS code from a 3D model, and because it has a very intuitive user interface, according to Golan, it takes only one or two days to become completely proficient in using it.

PAS CMM is not a direct competitor to any of the other software packages mentioned because it does not generate reports or work for on-machine probing. However, it works in conjunction with any of the mentioned packages or with software supplied by CMM OEMs to greatly reduce CMM programming bottlenecks.

http://www.americanmachinist.com/304/Issue/Article/False/83647/Issue